By Burl Gilyard January 12, 2000

Metro Transit bus driver Joe Lester's number came up last October when he was summoned for a random--and mandatory--drug test. It had been several years since the 12-year company veteran's last invitation to submit a urine sample; this time around, he recalls, things were much less relaxed than in the past. Lester says the company now handling the procedure--St. Louis Park-based Health System Minnesota, through its subsidiary Pathways--takes a hard-line approach: "They hustle you into a little room, there's no windows to see out of, they've got the windows papered over," he recalls. "You can't read, you can't sleep, you can't make phone calls." During his visit last fall, Lester ended up arguing with the tester on duty about whether he was legally allowed to bring... More >>>

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By Michael Dvorak

The tinkle wrinkle: Veteran driver Joe Lester kept his book and lost his job